NGU News


Boston Based Ensemble to Perform at NGU

Posted on: February 2, 2021
By LaVerne Howell, laverne.howell@ngu.edu

Ensemble Chaconne(October 16, 2018) Hailed for “vitality and character…style and verve” (MusicWeb International), and now celebrating its 33rd season, Ensemble Chaconne enthralls audiences across the country with vivid chamber music by the great European composers. The ensemble, based in Boston, will perform at North Greenville University on Tuesday, October 23 at 7:00 pm in Hamlin Recital Hall. The concert will transport the audience to the royal courts, salons, and great country houses of 18th century England, with music by Handel, Vivaldi, J.C. Bach, Giardini, and others, performed on instruments of the period.

Ensemble Chaconne (Peter H. Bloom, baroque flute; Carol Lewis, viola da gamba; and Olav Chris Henriksen, baroque lute and English guitar) will treat the audience to a dazzling tour of chamber music treasures from 18th century London, performed on historical instruments. The concert will feature masterpieces by Handel and Vivaldi, favorites of Londoners during the first half of the century, and selections by other great European composers who settled in London later: J. C. Bach, Carl Friedrich Abel (the last great viola da gamba virtuoso), famed oboist Johann Christian Fischer, illustrious violinist Felice de Giardini, and lutenist/harpsichordist Rudolf Straube, a favorite student of J.S. Bach.

The concert will showcase the English guitar (popular in 18th century London but rarely heard today), with baroque flute, viola da gamba, and baroque lute. Repertoire will include Vivaldi’s famous D Major lute concerto, Handel’s Sonata in A minor (Hallenser Sonata #1), Che ciascun per te sospiri by J.C. Bach, Fantaisie for English guitar by Straube, solos for viola da gamba by Abel, Trio V in C major by Giardini, and Sonata IX by Fischer.

Founded in 1985, Ensemble Chaconne concertizes in the United States and abroad. The group has been acclaimed for “virtuosity, balance and charm” (The Portland Press Herald) and praised for “vitality and character…style and verve” (MusicWeb International). Ensemble Chaconne has performed at London’s National Gallery, Atlanta’s Spivey Hall, The Royal Shakespeare Company’s residency at Davidson College, the Edison Theatre in St. Louis, The National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, the Bach Festival Society of Winter Park Florida, and the Yale Center for British Art, to name a few.

Ensemble Chaconne records on the Americas Musicworks label. Their CD Measure for Measure: The Music of Shakespeare’s Plays has been called “a must have” (Alabama Public Radio), “a rich musical experience” (The Concord Monitor), and “the perfect Elizabethan evening” (The Portland Press Herald). The disc is available at https://www.noteworthysheetmusic.com/cds.

Admission is free, but tickets are required. Contact the Cultural Events Office at 864.977.7008. 

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